Shiba Inu (SHIB) Mania, Dogecoin, Tesla’s Bitcoin Halt and Crypto Market Volatility: The Weekly Recap

To say that last week was eventful would be an understatement. The entire market went through extreme volatility. Many altcoins charted new all-time highs and went through serious declines as well.

Let’s start with Bitcoin. The cryptocurrency is currently down about 10% on the weekly – last Friday, it was trading at around $57K. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there, with the exception of the first few days as on Monday, BTC had an unsuccessful attempt at the coveted $60K mark.

On Thursday, Tesla announced that they would no longer support bitcoin payments for their vehicles, citing environmental concerns with BTC mining. This sent the entire market into a steep downturn, where the primary cryptocurrency crashed all the way to $45,700. Most altcoins followed.

Ethereum charted a fresh all-time high at around $4,400, but it was also affected by the downturn and crashed to $3,500 as a consequence. The same can be said for Binance Coin, Cardano, Ripple, and so forth.

However, Dogecoin clones such as Shiba Inu (SHIB), Akita, and so forth is where all the rage was this week.

Propelled by the sky-high increase in the price for DOGE, other cryptocurrencies with similar meme appeal, such as SHIB, Shiba Pup, Akita, and so forth, also took for the skies. Most of them shared one common trait – the developers had sent 50% of their total supply to the wallet of Vitalik Buterin as a “proof of burn.”

In a move that many didn’t see coming, however, Buterin started disposing of the billions worth of free money he had received. He donated large sums to charities in India, as well as to research facilities. This showed everyone that he doesn’t intend to keep these clone coins in a move that many considered a “rug.”

While a lot of these meme-inspired cryptocurrencies crashed and burned, some still brought massive gains to their investors. At the time of this writing, SHIB is up over 1500% over the past seven days.

All in all, it’s safe to say that it was a very exciting week in the cryptocurrency market. It’s interesting to see what the next week has in store.

Market Data

Market Cap: 2369$B | 24H Vol: 245B | BTC Dominance: 40.5%

BTC: $51,336 (-10.27%) | ETH: $4,139 (+18.36%) | XRP: $1.42 (-13.12%)

This Week’s Headlines You Better Not Miss

Vitalik Buterin Sells Off Dogecoin Clones: SHIB, AKITA, and Others Face Massive Dump. In a move that shocked many, Vitalik Buterin sold a lot of the meme-inspired Dogecoin clones that he received. This sold most of them in a severe downturn, though a lot are still performing very well over a seven-day period.

Tesla Stops Accepting Bitcoin: Price Slumps $3,000 In Response. The giant electric vehicle manufacturer, Tesla, has decided to halt payments using BTC for its cars. The company cited environmental concerns as the primary reason for the decision and stated that it would continue to hold bitcoin on its balance sheet.

MoneyGram to Enable Users to Buy Bitcoin and Withdraw it From Brick-and-Mortar Locations. One of the world’s leading money transfer companies, MoneyGram, will allow its users to buy and withdraw cryptocurrency for cash at traditional brick-and-mortar locations in the United States.

US Investment Bank Cowen to Offer Crypto Custody Services. More banks are getting involved in cryptocurrencies. Cowen Inc., a large multinational investment bank based in the US, announced plans to hold digital assets for hedge funds and asset managers.

Crypto Is the Solution to the Problem Created By the Federal Reserve: Stan Druckenmiller. Stan Druckenmiller thinks that the US Dollar could lose its status as the global reserve currency. This is because of the ongoing policy of the US Federal Reserve. He also believes that a ledger-based system can be the replacement.

eBay Now Allows the Sale of NFTs on its Platform. One of the leading online marketplaces, eBay, has become the first in its industry to jump aboard the non-fungible tokens (NFTs) bandwagon, as the company now allows the sale of NFTs on its platform.